(CNSNews.com) – More than 12 years after the U.S. first invaded Afghanistan to overthrow the Taliban and deprive al Qaeda of a base operations, the sexual abuse of Afghanistan children has reached an all-time high, according to the U.S. State Department.
The department’s 2013 Country Report on Human Rights in Afghanistan, which was released this month, says that 60 percent of girls in Afghanistan are married before their 16th birthday.
“Despite a law setting the legal minimum age for marriage at 16 for girls and 18 for boys, international and local observers estimated that 60 percent of girls were married before the age of 16,” the State Department said in its most recent human rights report.
The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) reported an increase in rapes in 2013, with most victims being children. In fact, sexual abuse of children reached an all-time high, the commission reported in June, according to the State Department.
Read More: http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/melanie-hunter/state-department-60-afghan-girls-are-married-16
Tags: afghanistan, forced marriage, forced marriage unit, halo project
